


Everybody Talks

by spiderdust



Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: F/M, Original Character(s)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-29
Updated: 2020-10-29
Packaged: 2021-03-08 20:28:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,761
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27262780
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/spiderdust/pseuds/spiderdust
Summary: Maria Stark would forever be known as 'Tony Starks Mistake'.Those very words were plastered across the front page of every newspaper across the world, accompanied by a picture of the one and only Tony Stark, walking into a baby store with a large, expensive pushchair.But did that stop him loving her to bits?No.
Relationships: OC/James "Bucky" Barnes, Pepper Potts/Tony Stark
Kudos: 2





	1. Chapter 1

** Thursday 8th, 1998 - 19:30 **

"Daddy?"

"Mmmh?"

Tony turned from where he was tidying up the mess of torn wrapping paper and paper plates, a frown crossing over his face when he saw the troubled look on his daughter's face. He immediately stood up, leaving the rubbish where it was for now, and quickly walked over, crouching down in front of her with a small smile.

"What's up, squirt? Bad dreams? Didn't like your presents? I don't care how rich I am - you're not getting any more presents-"

"Daddy, why don't I have a Mum like all the other boys and girls?"

Tony faltered, his voice cracking slightly. Rhodey had warned him that this day would come, that he couldn't just leave Maria in the dark about her mother. He knew that of course but he had never imagined that the day she would ask questions would come so soon. His eyes flickered slightly, coming back into focus, zoning in on the wide, mocha eyes of his daughter. He cleared his throat, trying to think of something.

"You have to understand that your mother was... she was a... a very..."

A crease formed between his eyebrows as he tried to think of something else to say. Truthfully, he didn't know anything about Maria's mother - not even her name. All he knew was that she was a guest at his 22nd birthday party, he had started flirting with her and they soon fell into bed, too drunk to think of anything else. When he woke up the next morning, she was gone and he never heard of her again.

That was until she arrived on his doorstep, 9 months later.

***Flashback***

_He opened the door and looked up to see a familiar-looking woman with a bundle of blankets in her arms and a determined look on her face. Before he could even utter a sound, the bundle was thrust into his arms._

_"Uh, I don't know what you think this is but we're not a charity and we don't want your old blank- hey, where do you think you're going?"_

_But the woman had already reached her car, looking back at him with crazed eyes as she opened the car and slid in. That was when he realised where he recognised her from - he had seen those crazed eyes in his bed the very night of his 22nd birthday party. As the car sped off, a lightbulb flickered to life inside Tony's head and he gaped at the blankets in shock._

_When he finally turned around, he came face to face with Harold Hogan, who had quickly nicknamed 'Happy', his newest bodyguard, who was holding a gun towards the bundle in his arms._

_"WOAH! What are you doing Happy!"_

_"Pointing a gun at the mysterious object that a mysterious stranger practically threw at you"_

_Tony couldn't help but be impressed by Happy's efficiency but it was quickly stomped down by annoyance as he had a strong inkling about what was inside those blankets. Shoving the gun aside with his elbow, he walked out of the room and into one of his many entertainment rooms. Placing the bundle onto the pool table, Tony grabbed a corner of a blanket and gingerly pulled it off the bundle, almost fainting when the chubby face of a newborn baby was revealed, hands gripping the table to steady himself._

***Flashback over***

"Daddy? You don't have to tell me if you don't want. I don't want you to hurt"

Tony was pulled out of his daydreaming, looking back at his daughter. As he did, more memories rushed in, of both him and Happy panicking when the fact that a baby was lying in front of them set in. After that, it all became a blur. They had immediately gotten a DNA test, just to be sure, and when the baby was confirmed as his daughter, Tony hadn't known what to do.

***Flashback***

_Having called a stay in nanny to take care of the baby - he refused to give the baby a name, it would become too real if he did - he spent the next week or so being told by an old family friend, Obadiah Stane, to put the baby up for adoption. He almost did, he was just punching in the adoption center number when the nanny rushed in with the baby, shouting out apologies and something about a family issue before practically shoving the tiny human into his arms and rushing out the door._

_The small, drooling human, now dangling from his arms, gurgled happily to itself. Tony had been surprised by the weight of it and had lifted it slightly to test exactly how heavy it was when their eyes and an image of his mother flashed through his mind. His mother, who had the same eyes as this small creature that he held in his arms. Before he had even consciously made a decision, Toney had swept his daughter up into a protective hold, a paternal instinct, that he never would've guessed he had, washing over him._

***Flashback over***

Ever since that day, Tony had referred to his daughter as Maria - his Mother's name - and despite constantly promising Obediah to put her up for adoption, he never did and soon enough, the man stopped asking, almost warming up to the newest household member.

"Don't worry, Squirt, I'm not hurting - not while you're here"

"I love you 3000, Daddy"

"I love you 3000 too, Squirt. Now, off to bed, you cheeky monkey!"


	2. Chapter 2

** Wednesday 25th, 2000 - 15:23 **

"Hi, Daddy! Sorry I'm late, Happy took me to go get cheeseburgers - look!"

Tony looked up from the stack of papers on his desk, smiling at his daughter as she fist-bumped both of the bodyguards and giving them each one of the cheeseburgers from the large pile of cheeseburgers piled up in her arms. Once they had accepted them, she walked through the open doors and sat down on the floor, ignoring the uncomfortable chair that sat in front of Tony's desk. She chucked two cheeseburgers at him before digging into one of her own.

"Hey, Squirt - I see you've managed to trick Happy again. Did you have a nice day at school?"

"Yeah, for a bodyguard, he's quite easy to fool. School was fun, I guess, We did a lot of Maths today but it was easy, as always. The teacher had to go get me some 5th Grade work and I still found it easy. Oh! You might also get a phone call in a bit because someone called me a mistake again today so I punched them"

Tony stared down at his 7-year-old daughter. It had been 2 years since she had asked about her mother and she hadn't asked since. Something that had come as result is that she was a lot more protective over himself and any mention of her mother. She especially didn't take nicely to being called a mistake - she had read enough newspapers about herself to know what it means.

This was the third time she had punched someone this month and while he couldn't blame her - he certainly never told her off - the teachers were getting annoyed and so were the parents. They were all demanding a parent-teacher conference but when Tony had asked Maria if she had wanted to go, she shook her head and that immediately settled it. He didn't want to go either so what was the point in forcing both of them to go.

Just then, Tony's mobile phone started buzzing. Flicking it open, he sighed when he saw that it was a call from Maria's school.

"Speak of the Devil and he doth appear"

Maria giggled. Smiling, Tony signaled to the bodyguards, telling them not to let anyone in while he takes this call. Pressing the answer button, he took a deep breath and pressed the phone to his ear.

"Hello, you have reached the voicemail of Tony Stark. Please leave a message at the tone-"

Maria burst into a fit of giggles, breaking Tony's concentration and making him chuckle at the sight of his daughter practically lying on the floor, trying to keep her giggles quiet. But it was too late.

"Mr. Stark, I know you believe yourself to be a comedian but seeing as you have tried to attempt that for the last 2 years, the funniness has kind of worn off - despite what Maria thinks"

Tony bit his lip, trying to suppress another chuckle. Instead, he gasped loudly, slapping a hand to his chest.

"You wound me, Mrs. Grey. Hitting me where it hurts, as always"

The conversation continued like that, Mrs. Grey trying to steer the conversation towards the punching incident and Tony trying to steer it away from the punching incident. After a few minutes of that, he felt a small tug on the sleeve of his shirt. Looking down, he saw Maria staring worriedly through the glass doors where a young woman, with long blonde hair tied up in a ponytail, was currently having an argument with the two bodyguards outside his door.

The bodyguards quickly got annoyed and went to grab her, intending to drag her away, but she threw up a hand and narrowed her eyebrows.

"Stop right there! I have Pepper Spray and I'm not afraid to use it!"

Tony snorted. What a bad liar. He hung up on the teacher, placing his phone back on his desk before walking up to the doors and opening them, poking his head out. Maria did the same thing, a big smile on her face. Both the Pepper Spray woman and the bodyguards looked back at them.

"Sir, she claims to have some important news that, if not fixed, could cost the company billions"

"Hmm. Let her in"

He ducked back into the room, making sure Maria had moved her head before opening the doors. The Pepper Spray woman walked in, looking around the office with interest. When her eyes landed on Maria, who was now sat back on the floor with her cheeseburgers, she smiled.

"So, Pepper Spray, what's your name?"

"Virginia Potts, sir"

"Hmm, I think I'll stick with Pepper. Pepper Potts - has a nice ring to it, don't you think?"

Pepper raised her eyebrows but didn't complain. She instead sat down in the chair in front of Tony's desk, not noticing Maria's small smile as she did so.

The meeting passed quite quickly, Pepper quickly explaining the small problem she had seen in the businesses finances - a small problem that could cost them billions. Almost immediately, Tony had switched on his computer, typing in codes and passwords that Maria could only dream of knowing - but she would know all of it when she inherited the business as CEO of the company. Her dad had promised her that. In a few minutes, the problem was solved and Pepper was promoted to Personal Assistant.

"I need a doughnut"

And then he walked out of the room, shouting a congratulation over his shoulder. Pepper was frozen in her seat, eyes wide, while Maria leaned back against the wall, chewing on her second cheeseburger. Eventually, Pepper turned around to look at her.

"Is he always like that?"

"Yup. Wanna cheeseburger? You'll need it before he comes back - he's never had a Personal Assistant so he'll try and dump everything onto you but you've got to stand up to him or you'll be drowning in work by the end of the week"

Pepper nodded faintly, and stood up shakily, walking over to where Maria sat. Joining her on the floor, she picked up a cheeseburger, unwrapped it, and took a large bite.

"Eugh - it's cold"

"Yup, welcome to the family, Pepper Potts"

* * *

**Las Vegas, January 23rd, 2010 - 21:00**

" _Tony Stark - visionary, genius, American Patriot. Even from an early age, the son of legendary weapons developer, Howard Stark, quickly stole the spotlight with his brilliant and unique mine. At age 4 he built his first circuit board. At age 6, his first engine. And at 17, he graduated-_ "

Maria Stark rolled her eyes, tapping her nail against her glass. Her father wasn't even here, not that she blamed him. If she was old enough to go gambling and get drunk, you could bet any sum money that she wouldn't be here right now either. But she wasn't - she wasn't even legal in the U.K, let alone in the U.S. So she was stuck here, once again, having to go up and accept the award.

" _Then, the passing of a Titan-_ "

Zoning back in immediately, Maria's eyes fixated on the image of her Grandfather, a man Tony Stark refused to talk about - at least to her, anyway. All she knew about her Grandparents was that she had her Grandmother's eyes and name and that they died in a car crash just over a year before she was born.

" _Howard Stark's lifelong friend and ally, Obadiah Stane, steps in to help fill the gap left by the legendary founder. Until at age 21, the prodigal son returns and is knighted the new CEO of Stark Industries. With the keys to the kingdom, Tony has begun a new era for his father's legacy, creating smarter weapons, advanced robotics, satellite targeting. Today, Tony Stark has changed the face of the weapons industry by ensuring freedom and protecting America and her interests around the globe_ "

Taking a sip of her water, Maria once again rolled her eyes as the whole room started clapping. Obadiah, who was sat a chair over from herself, was clapping the loudest, nodding his head in agreement with the presentation. She smiled when she spotted Rhodey walking across the stage, stopping at the microphone.

"As liaison to Stark Industries, I've had the unique privilege of serving with a real patriot. He is my friend and he is my great mentor. Ladies and Gentlemen, it is my honor to present this year's Apogee Award to Mr. Tony Stark!"

Loud, jaunty music blared through the speakers, and the clapping started up again, everyone straining their necks to try and catch a glimpse of Tony Stark.

Nothing happened.

"Tony?"

Rhodey looked over at their table, his eyes connecting with hers. She simply raised her eyebrows, throwing her hands up before crossing her arms and leaning back in her chair, shaking her head. Even after all their years of friendship, Rhodey was still surprised by her father's antics. Rhodey simply looked away, a mixture of amusement and annoyance on his face. Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted Obadiah preparing to stand up. Before he even had the chance to move his chair, Maria was out of hers and maneuvering through the tables, adjusting her dress as she went. The clapping, which had dropped slightly when people had realised Tony wasn't here, rose up again when she was spotted.

Despite being known as 'Tony Stark's mistake' for the first decade of her life, as she had gotten older, she had worked hard on proving to the people of America that she wasn't a mistake. She had given to more charities than she could count, held countless events to raise money for the homeless and underprivileged children as well as helping soldiers who suffer from PTSD or had lost limbs to adjust to their new life. And now, having just turned 17, she was nicknamed 'America's Sweetheart', a name she hated more than 'Tony Stark's mistake'.

She walked up onto the stage, her heels clicking as she made her way over to Rhodey, her smile strained as she accepted the award from him. Rhodey gave her a sympathetic smile, he knew how much she hated these sorts of events, before stepping out of the way, allowing her to stand in front of the microphone stand. She looked out at the crowd and took a deep breath.

"Well, I'm not Tony Stark-" Laughter rippled across the room, making her smile slightly. "But if my father were here, we all know he would say something sarcastic, throw up a peace sign and walk off the stage" Another ripple of laughter. "So what better way to honor him than to just that- Ladies and Gentlemen, thank you for your time but I'm sure it's not just me who hates these events so let's all go home"

The crowd laughed again, bursting into applause as Maria threw up a peace sign and walked off the stage, Rhodey right behind her.

* * *

**The Casino, January 23rd, 2010 - 21:47**

Maria pushed her way through the paparazzi, ignoring the flashes and the shouts. Apogee Award clutched tightly in her hands, she walked straight past the bouncer, trusting Rhodey to explain to him what she was doing. It didn't take her long to find her father, just look for the largest crowd of screaming, giggling woman and you could guarantee he'd be there. As she marched towards the crowd, she spotted her father getting all cozy with a woman in a long black dress. Rolling her eyes, she walked up to them and thrust her hand between their faces, forgetting that she held the award in that same hand. The bottom of the glass award caught the edge of the woman's mouth.

"Hey!"

"Sorry" She turned to her father. " You are unbelievable. Unbelievable"

"Oh no. Did Rhodey rope you into this?"

"Nobody roped me into anything. But I told Rhodey that if he presented you with an award, you would be deeply honored, didn't I Rhodey?"

"Sure did"

Rhodey appeared behind her, taking her father's attention off of her. Maria looked over at the woman who was still standing there, watching the conversation. Before she could shoo the woman away, her father started talking.

"Of course I'd be deeply honored and it's you, so when are we doing it? Uh, one more round-"

"Dad, it's right here - here you go"

"Oh, there it is. That was easy."

He wrapped a hand around the award but Maria wouldn't let go, simply staring him down while Rhodey looked on in amusement. They stared at each other for a few minutes, daring each other to be the first to back down. It didn't take long for Tony to give up.

"Ok, I'm sorry"

Releasing her grip on the award, she watched as her father took it before handing it over to the very woman who she had accidentally-maybe-on-purpose hit with the award. He turned back to the gambling table, muttering words under his breath as he grabbed a pair of dice. Before the woman could even blink, the award was back in Maria's hands. Tony turned back to the same woman, holding his hand out to her.

"Give me a hand, will ya?"

The woman blew on it and Tony turned to Rhodey, passing over her, expecting him to do the same. Maria smiled, he knew her so well. Rhodey refused and shoved her father's hand away when he persisted. The dice rolled out and everyone groaned. Maria smirked and started to walk off, knowing her dad would not be too far behind. Just as she predicted, both her dad and Rhodey were soon behind her, accompanied by Happy and several other bodyguards. The two men had a short conversation about the events that would be happening tomorrow before shaking hands. Rhodey gave her a quick hug before exiting the group.

"So, Maria. Sugarplum. The apple of my eye. My sweetest little munchk-"

"Ok! Shut up, I forgive you"

Toney fist-bumped the air, whispering words of success. Maria rolled her eyes, slowing down to walk beside Happy, smiling a the other two bodyguards who, despite her heels, were still taller than her. They were soon exiting the building and quickly made their way over to the car. Hopping into the car, she heard a woman voice shouting her father's name. When she noticed that her father had paused in the process of following her into the car, she tugged his sleeve, something she always did to get his attention.

"Dad. Come on-"

"Excuse me, Mr. Stark. Christine Everhart, Vanity Fair magazine - can I ask you a couple of questions?"

The woman looked at Tony hopefully, recorder already out. Maria watched as her father turned, muttering something to Happy before turning around and accepting the woman's request, stepping away from the car. Gritting her teeth, she glared at Happy before getting out of the car and leaning against the body of it.

"You've been called the Davinci of our time-" Maria snorted "- What do you say to that?"

"Absolutely ridiculous, I don't paint"

"And what do you say to your other nickname, The-"

"-Merchant of Death. Yes, yes. We've all heard of that, now if you'll excuse us, someone's actually awaiting our return back home-"

"Now, Maria. Let the woman speak. 'The Merchant of Death' - That's not bad. Let me guess. Burkley?"

"Brown, actually"

Maria's nostrils flared and she crossed her arms waiting for her father's attention to return back to her so she could take him home before he could cause any more trouble. She was used to him flirting with women - she didn't care, it was who he was. The only time it bothered her is when he flirted with reporters.

"Well, Ms. Brown. It's an imperfect world but it's the only one we've got. I guarantee you, the day that weapons are no longer needed to keep the peace, I'll start making Brixton Beans for baby hospitals"

"You rehearse that much?"

"Every night in front of the mirror before bedtime"

Eyes locked with Happy's, Maria blocked out the twos back and forth flirtation, instead resorting to a stare-off with the ex-boxer. She had never won against him in her life but she was determined. Her concentration was ripped away, however, when the tail end of her father's conversation reached her ears.

"Excuse me? Dad, I'm not sure if you realise but I'm still here and I refuse to sit in a car with you snogging a leech!"

Finally, Tony's attention was returned to his daughter and he looked at her, shocked.

"Oh, sorry kid. I can call you a different car if you want-"

"Don't bother, I'll just call Pepper to come and pick me up. See you tomorrow, Dad"

Maria ignored her Father's hurt expression and turned away, Happy following after her, dialing Pepper's number as she went. She picked up almost immediately.

"Maria? He's done it again, hasn't he?"

"Uh-huh"

"I'll be right there, I'll have Jarvis track your location"

"Thanks, Pepper, I knew I could count on you"

**Author's Note:**

> I know that 'I love you 3000' is Morgan's thing but I have a cute storyline with it - I promise :)


End file.
